7D mk2 horizontal line across image at higher ISOs

[JasSingh685]

So just over a year ago I purchased by first Canon DSLR, brand new, and am enjoying using it. However the past couple weeks i've noticed, especially in darker areas or higher ISOs, that the camera would produce a very clear, sharp, perfectly horizontal line across my image, about halfway up, halfway across from the right. I hope you guys can see it from the uploaded images, right clicking to open into a new tab makes it a lot easier to see.

Has anyone ever experienced this before? I'm really fearing the worst - sensor issue. Especially as I'm out of warranty now. I've tried a new SD card, re-flashing firmware, factory reset, and different lenses (Sigma F1.4 and my Canon USM 18-135mm) The line appears even if there is no card installed (when you quickly preview the image), but does not appear at ISO below 800, nor is it visible in live view mode while zoomed in digitally, or in a video recording! I'm very confused.

Is there anything else I could try?

Thank you in advance!

[Waddizzle]

I recommend a simple test to determine if it is the memory card(s) or the camera.  If it is convenient, use a tripod, but it is not really necessary.  Take a photo that saves to Slot A.  Take another photo that saves to Slot B.  

Compare the images.  If you see the line on only one Slot, then the memory card is likely bad.  If it appears on both images, then you most likely have an issue with the camera body/sensor.

[JasSingh685]

Thanks for your reply, unfortinately I don't have a CF card to insert into slot A as i only use SD cards. 

I did however connect the camera directly to my laptop via USB, removing the card, and shooting a few test photos. The line is still very much there. Again, only at the higher 1600+ ISOs. Same issue when shooting in RAW. Could there be an issue with the processing of the image? I still cannot see it in live-view or video mode.

I guess I will need to take it in for a diagnosis, if the sensor is faulty, how much can i generally be expecting for the part itself? Typical it happens now outside of warranty!

[Waddizzle]

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@JasSingh685 wrote:

Thanks for your reply, unfortinately I don't have a CF card to insert into slot A as i only use SD cards. 

I did however connect the camera directly to my laptop via USB, removing the card, and shooting a few test photos. The line is still very much there. Again, only at the higher 1600+ ISOs. Same issue when shooting in RAW. Could there be an issue with the processing of the image? I still cannot see it in live-view or video mode.

I guess I will need to take it in for a diagnosis, if the sensor is faulty, how much can i generally be expecting for the part itself? Typical it happens now outside of warranty!

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One explanation for the issue seeming to go away at lower ISO is because the camera amplifies the signal more as ISO increases.

[JasSingh685]

Thanks hoffman, I didn't consider this. I did look back at the history of photos, but as I usually shoot in day-time, or tripod with lower ISOs, I haven't many images to compare to. And those shots taken with the higher sensitivity which were within the warranty period, were absolutely fine! (of course they were.... )

The first image I can see the line, was taken about 3 weeks ago, at ISO 6400. It was only after some experimenting I managed to notice the line from 1600 or above. The warranty expired back in April 2018 so it's typical how it appears now.

Wadd, that makes sense, so if the sensor is faulty or has a break in connection, it would be more pronounced/amplifed given the higher ISO? In that case, I am certain at this point that it's a hardware issue. 

I'm guessing this isn't something you've seen before?

[jrhoffman75]

I’ve never experienced it, but others have posted about. Give Canon service a call at 1-800-OK-CANON. They might have some flexibility on warranty cutoff. 

[jrhoffman75]

The LCD on camera is possibly to coarse a display to show what looks to be a row of bad pixels. Maybe go back to some images you took before warranty expired and study in detail. Maybe you can see beginning of problem whike it was covered.

[jrhoffman75]

I meant to say stuck pixels. Dead pixels are black. Stuck pixels are a color.

[TCampbell]

Just by eye... it looks like two of the images might show the same row of pixels... but the other image looks like it’s almost directly in the center.  Did you crop any of these (is it always the same row or is it a random row)?

I have heard of people who damaged the sensor (e.g. at a concert and the laser show zapped the camera sensor badly enough to take out a row of pixels.)

[JasSingh685]

I will certainly give that a try, thanks hoffman, never knew they might have some kind of tolerance if I'm lucky.

Campbell yes sorry i should have mentioned that in the original post, the second image of the moon/sky is indeed cropped, I did this to make it easier to see the line. When viewing a full-size original image, the line is always exactly in the same spot. Sometimes it's black, sometimes white/yellow/blue etc, but its characteristic is identical across all photos.

I've heard of this too actually, but I haven't been to any light shows since i've owned the camera let alone taken it to such events. I really can't imagine how it has developed, aside from an unlucky manufacturers fault.

I appreachiate all the help!